Backcourt breakup fuels surging Magic.
Point guard Elfrid Payton and shooting guard Victor Oladipo thought of themselves as the Magic’s backcourt of the future as little as five days ago. Now? The future suddenly is no longer in focus, but the present is crystal clear.
Since new coach Scott Skiles split up Oladipo and Payton as starters, the Magic have won three straight games and have broken new ground in their rebuild.
The Magic improved to 9-8 — the first time they’ve been over .500 this deep into a season since Dwight Howard led a 12-5 start in 2011-12.
And get this: If the season ended Sunday — Orlando fans can only wish — the Magic would be the No. 8 seed in the playoffs. Low-hanging fruit, yes. But after three years of lottery misery, fans deserve to get a little crazy like they did in the Dwight days.
Break up the Magic!?
All Skiles had to do was break up the backcourt, the move, ahem, also coming at a time when teams
in Orlando’s weight class came calling (New York, Milwaukee and Boston).
Oladipo came off the bench for the third time in Sunday’s 110-91 victory against the Celtics while Payton made his 17th start in 17 games.
It’s a small sample size, but the switcheroo has worked, even with Oladipo playing the part of the reluctant reliever.
Despite the positive early returns, it sounds as if Skiles is trying the move on for size.
“There’s no permanence to it,” he said.
Unless, of course, the backcourt shuffle keeps equaling wins.
“We got to stick with what works,” Skiles said. “[Oladipo] has been so good in that role. We’ll keep him out there until it doesn’t work.”
Against Boston, Oladipo led the way with 19 points, providing punch in secondand third-quarter runs like a good sixth man should.
Just about every decision Skiles has made with GM Rob Hennigan’s personnel has worked this season. I mean, if he can exhume Andrew Nicholson’s career, you have to trust his less-ismore instincts with Oladipo.
In his three games out of the bullpen, Oladipo has averaged 20 points playing an average of 26.6 minutes. He’s reached the free-throw line 28 times after making 20 trips as a starter in the previous 10 games.
Here’s the rub for Oladipo: He could be stuck in this situation for a while as well as he’s playing.
No matter what public pabulum Oladipo spews forth, the switch hurt his pride. He’s not happy about it, even if his wayward shooting and inefficiency with the starters caused Skiles to refigure things.
Victor is 23, and every 23-year-old NBA player wants to start, collect stats and feel important. Most young guys look at the bench as a demotion as well as a loss of playing time and contract leverage.
In Oladipo’s case, he was all but considering himself as the face of the franchise – or at least in the running for the title.
He’s as dynamic on the court as he is off it, a glib showman who wore top hat and tails in the All-Star dunk contest.
Oladipo is the Magic’s highest draft pick during the post-Dwight era, taken by Hennigan at No. 2 in 2013. Hennigan traded up to land sidekick Payton at No. 10 last year.
Oladipo and Payton are no longer protected species now that winning has replaced Losing For Lottery Picks.
Skiles has demanded Payton adjust his game and concentrate more on passing than dribbling the night away. Maybe it’s coincidence or maybe there’s something to the data Skiles keeps reciting. But Payton had two double-doubles and shot 16-of-24 with Oladipo coming off the bench before misfiring badly (2-of-12) against the Celtics.
So breaking up the backcourt of the future wasn’t Skiles’ intention. But it’s one breakup that has a bright side so far.
If Oladipo keeps playing this way, he’ll never get his starting job back. And whether he likes it or not, that’s a good thing.